Geneos Wealth Management Inc. Purchases 3,218 Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

Key Points

• Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in Darden Restaurants, purchasing 3,218 shares for a total of 27,196 shares, valued at approximately $5.65 million.
• Several hedge funds also acquired shares of Darden, with institutional investors owning 93.64% of the company's stock, indicating strong institutional interest.
• Darden Restaurants recently increased its quarterly dividend from $1.40 to $1.50 per share and announced a $1 billion stock buyback program, reflecting confidence in its stock value.

Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) by 13.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 27,196 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after purchasing an additional 3,218 shares during the quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc.'s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $5,650,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of DRI. IFM Investors Pty Ltd increased its position in Darden Restaurants by 2.7% during the first quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 22,444 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $4,663,000 after acquiring an additional 592 shares during the last quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 30.0% during the first quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 2,522 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $524,000 after purchasing an additional 582 shares during the period. Integrity Alliance LLC. bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the first quarter valued at about $932,000. Advisory Alpha LLC grew its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 8.7% during the first quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 1,256 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $261,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 6.4% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 625,449 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $129,943,000 after purchasing an additional 37,878 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.64% of the company's stock.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Darden Restaurants stock traded down $0.78 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $212.62. 1,138,507 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 865,632. The stock's fifty day moving average is $207.63 and its 200-day moving average is $205.94. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12 month low of $155.18 and a 12 month high of $228.27. The stock has a market cap of $24.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.94, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, June 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.98 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.01. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 51.81% and a net margin of 8.69%.The company had revenue of $3.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.25 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.65 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.700 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Friday, June 20th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the restaurant operator to repurchase up to 3.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 10th were given a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. This is a boost from Darden Restaurants's previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 10th. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.57%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Darden Restaurants

In other Darden Restaurants news, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 523 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.65, for a total transaction of $107,031.95. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 5,423 shares in the company, valued at $1,109,816.95. This represents a 8.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 733 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $218.50, for a total value of $160,160.50. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 14,367 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,139,189.50. This trade represents a 4.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 45,727 shares of company stock valued at $10,022,232. Corporate insiders own 0.49% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on DRI. Citigroup boosted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $245.00 to $253.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $252.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. Raymond James Financial upped their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $190.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $218.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $224.92.

Darden Restaurants Profile

Darden Restaurants, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, owns and operates full-service restaurants in the United States and Canada. It operates under Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen, Yard House, The Capital Grille, Seasons 52, Bahama Breeze, Eddie V's Prime Seafood, and Capital Burger brand names.